Operation Balsam

Operation Balsam
Part of World War II
TypeNaval operation
Planned byBritish
Commanded byGeoffrey Oliver
ObjectiveNaval bombardment and aerial strikes on Japanese airfields in Sumatra, Japanese vessels in the Strait of Malacca, and aerial reconnaissance
Date10 June 1945 (1945-06-10)
Runways were put out of action, buildings, installations, hangars, locomotives, rolling stock and grounded aircraft strafed
CasualtiesO. F. Wheatley

Operation Balsam was a British naval operation in World War II, from 10–20 June 1945,[1] under the command of Commodore Geoffrey Oliver. The third in a string of similar missions, the objectives were the naval bombardment and aerial strikes on Japanese airfields in Sumatra, Japanese vessels in the Strait of Malacca,[1] and aerial reconnaissance.[2]

  1. ^ a b Jürgen Rohwer, Chronology of the War at Sea, 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two, page 423, 2005.
  2. ^ Edwyn Gray, Operation Pacific: The Royal Navy's War Against Japan, 1941–1945, page 238, 1990.